Refill mechanism for grease guns



April 1934- N. R. KRAUSE 1,956,073

REFILL MECHANISM FOR GREASE GUNS Filed Oct. 17. 1932 Fi e-2 IN VE N TOR. NORMA/v R KRA use BY v,

A TTORN E Y Patented Apr. 24, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Application October 17,

10 Claims.

The object of my invention is to provide refill mechanism in the form of a can especially adapted for containing lubricant to be dispensed by a grease gun of any suitable character, an example of a preferred form being shown and described in my copending application Serial No. 630,819, filed August 29, 1932. Grease for lubricant dispensersis commonly supplied in large containers from which it is removed as required for loading a grease gun, necessitating the expense of a considerable bulk quantity to be kept on hand an indefinite length of time until used, and the contents thereof are subjected to pollution from foreign matter by frequent exposure each time a small portion is removed. By my improvement lubricant may be supplied in limited and convenient quantities contained in cans of commerce and carried in stock in a similar manner to other canned goods to be sold in a single or larger number of such cans.

In the accompanying drawing, forming part hereof, Figure 1 is an elevation partly in section showing my improved can of grease inserted into a grease gun reservoir; Fig. 2, an elevation showing the can withdrawn from a reservoir and its contents transferred thereinto; Fig. 3, an elevation of my improved can partly broken to show its detail construction; Fig. 4, a fragmentary elevation of the can, taken on the dotted line 4-4 in Fig. 3; and Figs. 5 and 6 are fragmentary elevations partly in section of modified forms and showing the interior of the cans.

In said drawing the numeral 5 indicates the can body, preferably cylindrical in form, having a bottom, as 6, projecting beyond its periphery,

its upper end being converged, at 7, and also flanged, as at 8, to receive a press cover 9 for enclosing the contents when the can has been filled and read for commerce.

In the can body 5 1 insert a supplemental bottom 10 having a threaded neck 11, Fig. 4, adapted to be engaged by a hollow rod 12 forming part of and passing through a grease gun reservoir 14, and which is fully described in my copending application. A similar supplemental bottom 10' is shown in Fig. 5, except that the bottom 6 has an opening 6' therein communicating with the open neck 11, and which opening 6' is normally covered by a seal 15, while in Fig. 6 an imperforate bottom 10" may be employed, as will further appear.

In practice, when loading a grease gun with lubricant the cover 9 is removed and the can inserted in the reservoir 14, as indicated in Fig.

' 1, when the screw-rod 12 is turned to engage 1932, Serial No. 638,081

the threaded neck 11, whereupon it is but necessary to seize the flanged bottom 6 and pull the can outwardly from the reservoir, as indicated in Fig. 2. During the operation of withdrawing the can the same will be vented through said hollow rod 12 to obviate a vacuum therein, so that the can can be readily withdrawn until its flange 8, or equivalent stop, engages the supplemental bottom 10, whereupon the screw-rod is disengaged by turning in the reverse direction, and the can with the supplemental bottom therein removed, it being understood that the flange 8 prevents the escape of said bottom and that the emptied can may be dispensed with as desired. When employing grease guns with solid screw-rods 12, the neck 11 and bottom 6 may have the communicating openings 6' therethrough, Fig. 5, covered by a seal 15 of any suitable material which becomes pierced when the rod is projected through it to provide a vent for the can as it is being withdrawn to facilitate removal of its contents; while in the modified form shown in Fig. 6 the edge of the can body is turned inwardly, as at 6", to form a keeper for the slidable bottom 10", which bottom by a suitable implement may be retained in its rela tive position in the reservoir while the can is being withdrawn so as to complete the transfer of the contents to the reservoir 14.

As thus described it will be understood that I provide a can of standard size to contain a predetermined amount of lubricant which may be readily transferred into a grease gun reservoir without waste or soiling of hands, and by which method, when its contents have been transferred as described, the empty can and its sliding bottom may together be dispensed with as desired.

I claim as my invention:

1. Refill mechanism for a grease gun having a material retaining reservoir, comprising a cartridge adapted to be filled with grease to be expelled therefrom said cartridge being insertable in the reservoir, and means within the cartridge adapted to be coupled to movable means in the reservoir whereby when the cartridge is withdrawn from the reservoir the means in the cartridge will remove its contents into the reservoir.

2. Refill mechanism for a grease gun having a material retaining reservoir, comprising a cartridge adapted to be filled with grease to be expelledtherefrom said cartridge being insertable in the reservoir, and means within the cartridge adapted to be detachably connected to means in the reservoir whereby when the cartridge is withdrawn from the latter the means in the cartridge will remove its contents into the reservoir.

3. Refill mechanism for a grease gun embodying a reservoir, comprising a cylindrical shell having a fixed bottom and a removable cover said shell being insertable in the reservoir, and a loose disk within the shell having means adapted to be coupled to means in ,the reservoir whereby when the shell is withdrawn from the latter the disk will remove the cartridge contents into the reservoir.

4. Refill mechanism for a grease gun embodying a reservoir, comprising a cylindrical shell having a fixed bottom said shell being insertable in the reservoir, and a loose disk within the shell having means adapted to be coupled to means in the reservoir whereby when the shell is withdrawn from the latter air will be admitted between the bottom and the disk.

5. Refill mechanism for a grease gun embodying a reservoir, comprising a cartridge having a fixed bottom said cartridge being insertable in the reservoir, and means in the cartridge slidably engaging the same and having means adapted to be detachably connected to means in the reservoir whereby when the cartridge is withdrawn from the latter the contents of the cartridge will be transferred by said slidable means into the reservan.

6. Refill mechanism for a grease gun having a reservoir, comprisinga cylindrical shell adapted to be filled with grease to be expelled therefrom said shell being wholly insertable within the reservoir, and a loose disk in the cartridge embodying connectible means adapted to be engaged by means in the reservoir whereby when the shell is .withdrawn therefrom the disk will remove the contents of the cartridge into the reservoir.

'7. Refill mechanism for a grease gun having a reservoir, comprising a cylindrical shell having a fixed bottom and adapted to be filled with grease to be expelled said shell being insertable in the reservoir, a supplemental bottom in the shell including means adapted to be detachably connected to means in the reservoir whereby when the cartridge is withdrawn from the reservoir the contents of the cartridge will be transferred into the reservoir by said supplemental bottom, a removable closure in the opposite end of the shell, and means associated with the shell for retaining the supplemental bottom therein when the closure has been removed.

8. Refill mechanism for a grease gun having a reservoir, comprising a cartridge adapted to be filled with grease to be expelled said cartridge being insertable in the reservoir, and a movable supplemental bottom in the cartridge having means whereby said bottom may be engaged and held in fixed position by a coupling means in the reservoir while the cartridge is being withdrawn therefrom so that the contents of the cartridge will be transferred into the reservoir by said bottom.

9. Refill mechanism for a grease gun having a reservoir, comprising a cartridge adapted to be filled with grease to be expelled said cartridge having a flanged end and insertable in the reservoir, and material displacing means loosely positioned in the cartridge and prevented from escaping therefrom by said flanged end, said displacing means including means engageable by movable means in the reservoir for removing the contents of the cartridge into the reservoir.

10. Refill mechanism for a grease gun having a reservoir, comprising a cartridge adapted to be filled with lubricant to be expelled, said cartridge being insertable in the reservoir, and means in the cartridge adapted to be engaged by means associated with and projecting through the reservoir and into the cartridge for displacing the contents of the cartridge.-

NORMAN R. KRAUSE. 

